Chapter Two: The Mountain-Backed Blade

“What did you just say?”

Zhou Yi lay side by side with Song Hai on the grassy slope outside the city. Tilting his head, Zhou Yi turned to him with a question.

“Mountain Blade, of course. Why?” Song Hai replied lazily, eyes closed.

“A blade technique?” Zhou Yi muttered, pondering for a moment before asking, “Is there a Jianghu here?”

“Jianghu?” Song Hai was puzzled. “What’s Jianghu?”

“Jianghu... Jianghu is... it’s...” Zhou Yi was stumped by the question. His mouth opened and closed, lips moving soundlessly, but he couldn’t find the words.

What was Jianghu, really?

Could it be that wherever there are people, there is Jianghu?

Don’t be ridiculous. That’s the sort of thing used to fool children, and he was no child.

Then what is Jianghu?

“Forget it. It doesn’t matter. Anyway, I transmigrated into a world of martial heroes, that much is certain!” His thoughts a muddled paste, Zhou Yi finally gave up wrestling with the question and shifted focus.

“So, those things that existed only in legend—scaling walls, plucking flowers and leaves to use as darts, never missing a shot, martial arts—all of them are real now, and I have a chance?”

“Oh, right, Song Hai!”

“Hm?” Song Hai turned his head to look at him.

“Jianghu. Jianghu is a dream!”

“Huh?” Song Hai stared blankly, eyes unfocused. “Jianghu is a dream?”

“Yes, that’s right. Jianghu is my dream!”

“Well, I don’t really get it, but I support you!”

“So, what are you going to do?”

“What am I going to do? Simple. Didn’t you just say it? Mountain Blade!” At that moment, the light in Zhou Yi’s eyes shone brighter than a monkey’s curiosity, piercing the sky.

“Mountain Blade? So you mean...?” Song Hai seemed to catch Zhou Yi’s drift. His expression turned odd, an eyebrow raised in question.

“First, we’ll join Mountain Blade and learn their blade technique!” Zhou Yi was resolute and confident, as if he were discussing what to have for breakfast.

“Oh, right, Mountain Blade must be a sect. Their signature martial art is the Mountain Blade technique, isn’t it?” Zhou Yi, not noticing Song Hai’s peculiar look, suddenly thought of something and asked.

“Uh...” Now Song Hai looked at Zhou Yi as if he were mad. He replied reflexively, “Yes, Mountain Blade is a sect, and their signature technique is indeed the Mountain Blade method.”

“Good, as long as that’s clear.” Zhou Yi nodded with satisfaction, rolling over to find a more comfortable position. “That makes things easy.”

“Easy?” Song Hai sat up abruptly and stared at the relaxed Zhou Yi in disbelief. “You think it’s easy? Do you have any idea how hard it is to join a martial sect? And you want to learn their ultimate technique? Do you know how rare it is for someone, even as an inner disciple, to be taught their signature art?”

“Ah, don’t be so tense.” Zhou Yi replied, utterly unconcerned, rolling over in the grass. “You need to stay calm. With your temperament, how can you ever achieve great things?”

“Great things!” Song Hai sighed, exasperated, glancing at Zhou Yi’s shameless demeanor with a sense of helplessness. “I really don’t know where you get your confidence.”

“You think joining a martial sect is just that easy? Sure, I’ll admit you have some skills. At the very least, you’ve managed to get us plenty to eat and drink, even as beggars. That’s not nothing.”

“As long as you know!” Zhou Yi grumbled under his breath.

“You...” Song Hai was almost fuming, glaring at him as if trying to figure out how someone could have such thick skin. “You might have solved our immediate needs, but do you really not understand why we’re lying out here on this hillside?”

“Oh, come on! I just tricked them out of a little money. Is it really such a big deal?”

“A little money? Is it really just a little?” Song Hai shouted. “You call that a little? You conned Master Wang in town out of nearly half his fortune! When he realized what happened, he used the rest of his wealth to put out a bounty for us. Now we can’t even set foot in town. What good is having money if we can’t use it?”

“As if you didn’t take any!” Zhou Yi retorted disdainfully, then added, “Besides, that old man was way too stingy. So what if I took half his fortune? He still has enough left to live comfortably for the rest of his life!”

“You really have some nerve.”

“You call him stingy, but are you any more generous?”

“Whatever, let’s drop it and change the subject.”

“Do you have a dream?” Zhou Yi turned to Song Hai, eyes bright and earnest.

“A dream?” Song Hai repeated, then met Zhou Yi’s gaze. “Does hoping to eat my fill every day count?”

“It counts!” Zhou Yi blinked, thought for a moment, and continued, “If nothing unexpected happens, you’ve already achieved that dream. So, do you have any other dreams?”

“Anything else?” Song Hai lowered his head and thought hard under Zhou Yi’s expectant gaze. After a long pause, he looked up with a sunny smile. “Nope!”

“Hmm.” Zhou Yi covered his face with his hand, stretched, and looked away. “Don’t you think a person ought to have a dream?”

Bang!

“I see,” Song Hai mused, getting up to stretch lazily, then flopping back onto the grass with a thud. “So, do you have any suggestions?”

“Hmm.” Zhou Yi pondered for a moment before answering. “We could start with an easy, short-term goal—something simple to achieve.”

“Like what?” Song Hai asked, taking a deep breath and keeping up his lazy demeanor.

“For example, we could join the Mountain Blade Sect first.”

“Cough, cough—cough, cough, cough!” Song Hai choked so hard he nearly couldn’t breathe.

After a long while, Song Hai finally recovered, eyes wide as he stared at Zhou Yi. “Join Mountain Blade Sect? That’s your so-called small goal?”

“Yeah!”

“Then what’s your big goal?”

“Take a guess!”

“Take a guess? Guess your—!” Song Hai was speechless, swearing under his breath.

“So if joining Mountain Blade is a small goal, then mastering their blade technique must be your big goal, right?”

“Uh...” Zhou Yi considered, choosing his words. “Not really.”

“Then, learning the Mountain Blade technique—what stage is that for you?”

“Well, if I called it a small goal, that would be too wild. Not too big, not too small—let’s call it a medium goal.”

“Damn!” Song Hai almost wanted to curse out loud. “That’s not wild?”

“You’re something else! Amazing!”

Song Hai was left completely speechless by this new friend of his.